Microsoft has unveiled findings of its Asia Workplace 2020 Study , where it found that employees in Philippines do not feel empowered to embrace the demands of the digital workplace.

While 79% of Philippines respondents consider themselves to be mobile workers and spend at least 20% of their time working outside of their offices, 64% feel empowered by their organization’s culture and managers to be able to work together productively and collaboratively. In addition, only 53% of respondents agree that their organization is committed at a leadership level to ensure every employee is included in closing the digital skills gaps within the workforce.

The Study, which involved close to 4,200working professionals from 14 markets in Asia, sought to understand shifting employee behaviours and gaps in the workplace when it came to productivity, collaboration and flexi-work practices. This included 312 respondents from Philippines.

“As Asia primes itself to become the most connected market with more than half of all mobile connections originating from the region by 2021 , organizations need to rethink how they empower their workforce with the right culture, policy, infrastructure and tools to maximise their potential. This means enabling collaboration from anywhere, on any device.

“However, it is also critical for business leaders to evaluate and implement changes to counter cultural and management challenges that are hindering employees to work seamlessly from wherever they are, which will in turn, hinder an organization’s growth and progress in the digital age,” said Cian O’Neill, Microsoft Philippines Chief Marketing and Chief Operating Officer.

An earlier version of the Study conducted in 2015 found that 58 out of 100 respondents in Philippineswere ready for theNew World of Work, whereby organizations had the right People, Place and Technology principles in place to enable a productive, collaborative and innovative workforce. This year, 67 out of 100 respondents felt so, indicating that organizations in the market are slightly more equipped, although more can be done to move the needle.

But beyond People, Place and Technology factors, the rise of the 4th industrial revolution has also accelerated the pace of transformation. A recent Microsoft Asia Digital Transformation Study conducted in late 2016 found that‘EmpoweringEmployees’is the numbertwodigital transformation priority among Philippines’ business leaders. On the other hand, having a digital skilled workforce was ranked the third barrier in their digital transformation journey.